Gustavo Adolfo Costas Makeira (born 28 February 1963) is an Argentine football manager and former player who played as a centre-back. He is the current manager of Paraguayan club Cerro Porteño.

Costas' career is mainly linked to Racing Club, where he played for twelve seasons in two different spells, and coached in three different spells. He has also coached in Paraguay, Peru, Saudi Arabia, Ecuador, Colombia, Mexico, Chile and Bolivia.

Playing career

Born in Buenos Aires, Costas was a Racing Club youth graduate. After making his first team debut in 1981, he saw the club's first-ever relegation from the Primera División from the stands, as he was nursing a knee injury.

Costas became a key part of the team that won promotion back to the top tier in 1985, acting as team captain. He later helped La Academia to win the 1988 Supercopa Libertadores, their first major title in 21 years, they then went on to win the less prestigious Supercopa Interamaricana.

Costas moved abroad in 1989, joining Swiss team Locarno. He returned to Racing in 1992, playing for four seasons before moving to Gimnasia de Jujuy in 1996, where he played until his retirement in 1997 at the age of 34.

Costas played 337 matches for Racing, scoring nine goals. He became the footballer with the most appearances for the club in the professional era, and the second of their entire history (only behind Natalio Perinetti's 407 matches in the amateur era).

Managerial career Early career After retiring, Costas joined the youth categories of his main club Racing, before being named manager of the first team along with Humberto Maschio on 17 December 1998. The duo left on 23 May 2000, after a 3–0 loss to Lanús.

On 1 July 2001, Costas moved to Paraguay after being named manager of Guaraní. On 9 April 2003, after having altercations with the club's vice-president Juan Alberto Acosta, he resigned.

Alianza Lima Shortly after leaving Guaraní, Costas was presented at Peruvian side Alianza Lima on 18 April 2003. He immediately led them to success in the 2003 Clausura, and then saw his team win the Primera División Peruana final against Sporting Cristal.

In 2004, Costas led Alianza to the Apertura 2004 title and another chance to win the final of the Primera División where they again defeated Sporting Cristal, this time 5–4 on penalties.

Cerro Porteño Costas left Alianza in December 2004 to return to Paraguay, where he took over Cerro Porteño. Under his leadership the club won both the Apertura and Clausura in 2005 to be crowned undisputed national champions.

Costas resigned from Cerro on 24 April 2007, after disagreeing with an interview from club president Luis Pettengill.

Racing Club return On 27 April 2007, Costas agreed to return to Racing Club for his second spell in charge of La Academia. He was sacked on 2 December, after a poor Apertura overall.

Olimpia On 12 December 2007, Costas signed a two-year contract to manage Olimpia back in Paraguay. The following 29 August, after a 4–0 loss to Universidad Católica, he was dismissed.

Alianza Lima return On 19 December 2008, Costas agreed to return to Alianza Lima on a two-year contract. He led the club to the 2009 Torneo Descentralizado finals, losing to Universitario.

Al Nassr On 18 July 2011, Costas resigned from Alianza to sign for Al Nassr from Saudi Arabia. He was dismissed on 30 November, with the club sitting 6th in the league table.

Barcelona SC On 11 April 2012, Costas switched teams and countries again, after being announced as manager of Ecuadorian side Barcelona SC on a one-year deal. He won the first stage which secured Barcelona a spot to the 2012 Copa Sudamericana, 2013 Copa Libertadores and the third stage of the Ecuadorian Serie A. On 2 December, Barcelona won the second stage, automatically becoming the champion of the 2012 Ecuadorian Serie A.¡Barcelona Campeón!

On 6 December 2012, Costas extended his contract with Barcelona until December 2013. He departed on 12 August 2013, after a poor run of results.

Santa Fe On 16 May 2014, after nearly one year without a club, Costas was appointed manager of Colombian club Independiente Santa Fe. He led the club to the 2014 Finalización title, but resigned the following 30 May, after elimination from the 2015 Copa Libertadores.

Atlas On 27 November 2015, Costas replaced Gustavo Matosas at the helm of Liga MX side Atlas. He was sacked the following 27 April, two matches before the end of the 2016 Clausura tournament.

Santa Fe return On 21 July 2016, Santa Fe announced the return of Costas as manager. He won the 2016 Suruga Bank Championship and the 2016 Finalización titles, aside from also lifting the 2017 Superliga Colombiana.

Costas resigned from Santa Fe on 9 June 2017, after a poor 2017 Apertura.

Al-Fayha On 1 November 2017, Costas replaced Constantin Gâlcă as manager of Al-Fayha back in Saudi Arabia. He was sacked on 15 October of the following year, with the club in the relegation zone.

Guaraní return On 6 June 2019, Costas agreed to return to Guaraní after 16 years, being presented four days later. He left by mutual consent on 28 May 2021, after a poor 2021 Apertura tournament.

Palestino On 20 December 2021, Costas replaced compatriot Patricio Graff as manager of Chilean club Palestino.

Bolivia national team On 19 August 2022, Costas confirmed as manager of the Bolivia national team, effective as the following November, once his season with Palestino ended. On 23 October 2023, after a poor start in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, he was sacked.

Third spell at Racing On 15 December 2023, Costas was officially announced as manager of Racing for his third spell. On 24 November 2024, he won the year's Copa Sudamericana with the club, their first international title in 36 years. On 27 February 2025, he led the team to win their first Recopa Sudamericana, winning against Botafogo, which was 2024 Copa Libertadores champion.

Managerial statistics

+ Managerial record by team and tenure TeamNatFromToRecordRacing Club17 December 199923 May 2000Guaraní1 July 20019 April 2003Alianza Lima18 April 200311 December 2004Cerro Porteño11 December 200424 April 2007Racing Club5 May 20074 December 2007Olimpia1 January 200829 August 2008Alianza Lima1 January 200917 July 2011Al Nassr18 July 201130 November 2011Barcelona SC11 April 201212 August 2013Santa Fe16 May 201430 May 2015Atlas27 November 201527 April 2016Santa Fe21 July 20169 June 2017Al-Fayha6 November 201715 October 2018Guaraní1 June 201914 June 2021Palestino1 January 202213 November 2022Bolivia14 November 202223 October 2023Racing Club15 December 202323 May 2026Cerro Porteño28 August 2026presentTotal

Honours Player Racing Supercopa Sudamericana: 1988 Recopa Sudamericana runner-up: 1989

Manager Alianza Lima Peruvian Primera División: 2003, 2004

Cerro Porteño Paraguayan Primera División: 2005

Barcelona Ecuadorian Serie A: 2012

Santa Fe Categoría Primera A: 2014 Finalización, 2016 Finalización Superliga Colombiana: 2015, 2017 Suruga Bank Championship: 2016

Racing Club Copa Sudamericana: 2024 Recopa Sudamericana: 2025

See also List of football managers with the most matches

References

External links

Futbol Peruano profile